NBA Power Rankings, Week 20

#NBA Power Rankings, Week 20! Back to business.https://t.co/U40CAusQMr pic.twitter.com/ohCFWryp2k— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) February 28, 2022

#4
Los Angeles Lakers
Last Week:4
Record: 38-21

OffRtg: 114.2 (10)
DefRtg: 112.6 (13)
NetRtg: +1.6 (13)

Pace: 98.5 (22)

After losing their first game out of the All-Star break, the Lakers have won six straight, improving to 6-2 with Luka Dončić in uniform.

Three takeaways

The Lakers’ Friday win over the Clippers was just their sixth (they’re 6-17) in a game they trailed by double-digits and just the second of those six comeback wins coming since mid-November. But they haven’t had to worry much about falling into deep holes lately because they’ve been dominant out of the gates. Over their last 19 games, the Lakers have outscored their opponents by an amazing 34.3 points per 100 possessions in the first quarter, ranking second in first-quarter offense and first in first-quarter defense (by a huge margin) over that stretch.

The defense has also been strong late in games. Five of the Lakers’ six games during this winning streak have been within five points in the last five minutes, and they’ve allowed just four points on 18 clutch defensive possessions over that stretch. That includes keeping the Clippers scoreless (0-for-8 from the field with five turnovers) on nine clutch possessions over the weekend, with the highlight being LeBron James’ chase-down block (initially called a goaltend) on Kris Dunn.

With Rui Hachimura out, Dorian Finney-Smith started the two games against the Clippers. The start wasn’t great on Friday, but since he arrived from Brooklyn, the Lakers have been 14.5 points per 100 possessions better with Finney-Smith on the floor (plus-13.9) than they’ve been with him off the floor (minus-0.6). That gives him two of the top five on-off differentials among players who’ve logged at least 500 minutes with a single team.

Two of the best wins on this 18-4 stretch that the Lakers have been on over the last month and a half were against the Celtics (in Boston) and Knicks (at home). They’ll face both again this week, with their game in Boston on Saturday being the start of a four-game trip that also includes visits to Milwaukee and Denver.

Week 20: vs. NOP, vs. NYK, @ BOS